1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to bowling pins and, more particularly, to an improved bowling pin having a wood body core clad with an ionomer resin.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Plastic-coated bowling pins are well known and in their most general form, comprise a wood core to which the plastic coating material is applied employing any one of several known and conventional techniques. For example, successive layers of coating material can be deposited upon the core from a solvent solution until a coating of the desired thickness is obtained. In another procedure, a thermoplastic coating material can be cast or injection molded directly over the core. Thermoplastic coating material can also be applied to the core by the process of rotary thermoforming.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,404,885 to Richard A. Smith (AMF Incorporated) discloses a bowling pin having a core of wood or other suitable material clad with a copolymer of caprolactam and an alkyl ester of acrylic acid and, optionally, a moisture cured polyurethane topcoat for added soil repellency and/or intensity of color. The plastic-coated wood core bowling pin of U.S. Pat. No. 3,520,969 to Richard A. Smith (AMF Incorporated) utilizes as the coating material a polyurethane prepared from the reaction of a polyol and a polyisocyanate to provide a prepolymer, the latter then being cured with a diamine chain extender such as MOCA (4,4'-methylene-bis (2 chloroaniline)) to provide the ultimate polymer. A preform of the polyurethane is molded over the bowling pin core under heat and pressure. U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,344 to Joseph Infantino (AMF Incorporated) discloses a bowling pin having a preformed wood core encased in polyurethane such as aforedescribed and having a de-adhering coating on the core which significantly reduces the incidence of product life-shortening bump or blister formation to which the polyurethane coatings are otherwise prone.
These and other plastic-coated pins such as are currently in use typically require a "break-in" period before their consistent scoring potential is fully realized. The break-in period can range from several score to several hundred games before a relatively high level of scoreability is consistently achieved. Accordingly, there has heretofore existed a need for a plastic-coated bowling pin which requires little or no break-in period and at the same time, retains the neat appearance and durable service characteristics for which resin clad bowling pins are widely noted.